Olivia Bucks/The OregonianMultnomah County Judge Kenneth Walker says "feeling disrespected" isn't enough of a reason to kill someone as he sentenced Latwan Brown to 20 years in prison with no possibility of early release.A Multnomah County circuit judge expressed exasperation at yet another
killing of an African American man by an African American man -- this
time during a 2008 funeral at a North Portland church.

Feeling disrespected is not enough of a reason to kill someone, said
Judge Kenneth Walker, who also is African American. "I hope this is a
lesson to you and all the young brothers who are going to hear about
this," Walker said.

Multinomah County Sheriff's OfficeLatwan BrownWalker then sentenced Latwan Brown on Monday to 20 years in prison for the killing of Darshawn Cross on Dec. 12, 2008, during a funeral inside the New Hope Missionary Baptist Church.

The judge's words came moments after Cross' grandmother told Brown how tired she was of "hearing about people getting shot."

"I don't understand why this happened," said Shirley Cross. "But I want you to think about Darshawn every day."

Hands cuffed and chained to his waist, Brown looked up and nodded. Other members of the dead man's family silently looked on. Brown, 32, declined to say anything when given the opportunity by the judge.

Authorities say that although Brown and Cross had a long simmering dispute, both men attended the funeral of Sharon Lynn Kemp, 51, at the church, 3725 N. Gantenbein Ave. Both men had a history of gang involvement. Cross, 31, had been shot four months earlier, but no suspect had been arrested in that attack.

It's unclear exactly what the two were arguing about at the funeral, but witnesses said a fight broke out in the back of the church. Four shots were fired; three hit Cross. He died three days later.

An estimated 150 people attended the funeral, but authorities say some witnesses were hesitant to officially come forward with information. A week later, the Albina Ministerial Alliance, a group of pastors, held a news conference urging cooperation with police, denouncing the shooting and calling for a new push to reduce gang violence.

But the cycle apparently didn't stop there. Portland police said the shooting sent gang tensions to a boiling point -- spurring almost one shooting per a day for the next several weeks. On Dec. 31, two 18-year-old men, Willy Butler and Darius Perry, were killed at a Gresham apartment complex.

Butler was the brother of Brown, the Dec. 12 shooter at the funeral.

Deputy District Attorney Patrick Callahan, who prosecuted Brown, said things cooled down in early January, after police located Brown in California and arrested him.

Brown pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter with a gun and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He'd originally been charged with murder -- a crime that would have carried a 25-year prison sentence upon conviction. Under the plea agreement, Brown must serve the full 20 years that he agreed to. He won't be eligible for time off for good behavior.

Walker, the judge, used Monday's hearing to re-emphasize the senselessness of shootings.

"One of the hardest things I've ever had to do is send young African American men to prison," said Walker, who grew up in Compton, Calif.

"It has to stop," Walker said. "I wish we could take every gun in the world on a boat out to the ocean and dump them."

He said he's tired of seeing this cycle of violence.

"I know a lot of people say we're post-racial because of Barack Obama," Walker said. However, the judge said the struggles of the black community are still evident, noting that unemployment among black men is close to 20 percent. Shootings, such as the one Brown was responsible for, just make matters worse, he said.